The Portal
by B00k Freak
Summary: My rewrite of the surprise party scene in 'Birthmark.' Raven gets hit with the vision of death a little early. What will she tell the others?


**a.n. I'm baaaaaaaaack! Did ya miss me? Did ya notice I was gone? Somehow I don't think so :P oh well. Yeah, my rewrite of the party scene in 'Birthmark.' It probably sucks, but meh, what can you do? Sorry that I haven't posted in ages, I've got uni auditions to practice for. Can someone explain how I can practice something 3 hours a day and still not get it right?**

**Disclaimer: Same as usual, I own nothing, how sad, cry cry cry, deal with it.**

"Six pm, just six more hours and it'll be over." _Thank Azar. _Raven wasn't sure how much more of this she could take. Since midnight she had sat in her room staring at the clock, waiting for the day to pass. She had not eaten or slept and the fear and foreboding was so strong all of her emotions bar Rage had to restrain Timid, lest she break free. She was thankful that the others had not bothered her today. It was a rare occurrence, and she was glad of it. She couldn't face them.

Her thoughts were interrupted by a loud bang on her door. "Hello?"

She exited her room and looked around. This could be it. Raven knew that if today was the day, Trigon would send her some kind of sign, but she didn't know what it would be or how it would be delivered. _What if the message is our friends' lifeless bodies bled white on the floor with our name spelt out in their blood? _Timid whimpered.

_You're not helping, Timid. _Thought Raven as she made her way down the hall. The lights were out, this could be bad. Usually at this time everyone was up, hanging out in the common room. The fear and paranoia was growing inside her as Timid slowly began to break free. What if Trigon had killed her friends? She hadn't seen them or spoken to them since they had defeated Doctor Light, and it would explain why they hadn't tried to coax her from her room.

The doors to the common room opened with their usual hiss. Darkness. Darkness was bad. Darkness was what happened when no one could turn on the lights. Darkness was fear, and darkness was death. Darkness meant-

"SURPRISE!"

Raven's emotions reacted faster than she did. She screamed and disappeared into the floor before she could analyse the situation. Generally her reaction to something unknown was fight or flight, fight being Rage and flight being Timid. Rage usually won due to her power and Trigons influence, but Raven was more afraid of Trigon at the moment than anything else she had ever felt.

"Uuh, Raven?" Cyborgs voice asked from overhead.

"It is merely us your friends, with warm wishes for the day of your birth."

Robin's voice scolded someone, "I told you a surprise party was a bad idea."

_Gee, I wonder who it could be. _Raven thought sarcastically before beaming up behind Beast boy, sending him screaming, "How did you know it was my birthday?"

He seemed sheepish, "Um...'member last night how you made that big deal about tomorrow? Well, we started wondering what tomorrow was, so we did some snooping." The other three glared at him. "Okay, _I_ did some snooping. And I sorta found a restricted file in the off limits area of the Titans' computer that kinda had your birthday on it."

Raven tried to hide her fear and sorrow. Of all the things he could have found out; where she came from, her mother, her emotions names, he found out this. The worst thing.

"And we have been preparing your celebration ever since." Piped up Starfire. Raven clenched her hands hard, her fingernails digging painfully into the palms of her hands, almost drawing blood.

Beast boy slid up to her, putting one arm around her shoulders, "We put up tons of decorations." Raven did her best to hide the tensing of her shoulders, hoping he would think it was because he was touching her.

"I baked my famous eight-layer cake with three kinds of frosting." Said Cyborg, presenting a giant cake on a platter which was almost as tall as she was. Raven bit the inside of her lip.

"And I have assembled for you a traditional Tameranian throknar. The crown of meat!" Exclaimed Starfire, holding up a pillow with the throknar on it. The tiny piece of Raven that was not desperately holding back tears was surprised that Beast boy did not demand a funeral for the circlet.

Robin noticed her stunned expression, "I hope this is okay. We just-"

Raven shook her head, unable to stop the trembling now. She felt sick. They did this for her, and how was she going to repay them? Sooner or later Trigon would come and kill them all. And it would be her fault. "No, it's not. Just don't, please." The other titans were shocked; she was actually begging. Raven never begged; she threatened, she demanded, but she didn't beg. "Not today; I can't. Just please don't. Tomorrow I'll do whatever; I'll play video games, I'll do the girl talk just give me today. I can't _do_ this!"

She could feel the tears welling up in her eyes, the fear and pain of this day threatening to escape and knew that she couldn't let them see her like this. She was meant to be the strong one, the emotionless logical one. She attempted to hook into her powers and phase through the floor and return to her room, but she didn't realize how emotional she really was. Timid was on the loose, and her powers weren't hers to control, so she only succeeded in sinking to her knees onto the carpeted floor. The others were kneeling around her in a snap.

"What is wrong Raven?"

Raven shook her head over and over, not looking at any of them and covered her face with her hands, "Please, just go, I don't want to. Leave me for one day, _please_."

They immediately enveloped her in a group her, but this only made her emotions go even more haywire. As much as Raven appreciated the comfort it didn't much help her out of control emotions.

She closed her eyes and clutched her head, breathing deeply, chanting her mantra. "Azarath Metrion Zinthos, Azarath Metrion Zinthos…"

She would have continued chanting if not for the gasps the emanated from her friends, promptly followed by the stuffy scent of smoke. When she opened her eyes it was like her worst nightmare come true. No, it _was_ her worst nightmare come true. The entire room was engulfed in flames and her friends were cowering beside her uncomprehendingly. Through the large window of the tower she could see that the city was little more than a ruin in the distance.

Raven was frozen in fear as a gravelly voice echoed out, "What you have concealed you shall become. You have no other choice; your destiny will be fulfilled." A column on flame darted across the room, forming the mark of Scath against the opposite wall. Raven was drawing rapid breaths and was shaking all over, her usual ice queen facade gone. "The portal must be opened!"

"_NO!"_

The other titans stared at Raven in shock as the flames and hellish vision vanished. They were scared, no doubt about it, but Raven's fear was not like theirs; hers was not fear of the unknown. She knew what was happening, and it scared her to death.

"What was that?" Cried Robin, only half rhetorically.

Raven was scrambling away from where the mark had formed, "No no no no no no no no no no no, I won't do it, I won't." she said, almost completely ignoring her friends. There were tears in her eyes as she tried to escape, but at the same time she realized it was impossible. They were beginning to worry for her sanity.

Beast boy approached the dark sorceress, kneeling to her level and taking one of her hands, "Raven what's wrong?"

Raven merely squeezed her eyes shut and shook her head constantly. Several objects in the room glowed black and began to spin around the perimeter of the common room.

"Raven you can tell us _anything_. You're not alone."

The others were surprised. They had never seen this side of Beast boy and Raven's relationship before. They knew that there was more to it than they saw, but it was still a surprise. Raven suddenly looked up at the green boy, "Help me." She said plainly.

Her behavior was puzzling Beast boy. She was scared, he could see that, but there was something else wrong. She wasn't acting like the Raven he knew. As he began to notice the objects soaring around them Ravens cloak began to turn grey. She was acting very "Timid."

"W-what?"

Beast boy laced his fingers with hers and forced her to look at him, "Raven, you need to calm down."

Raven nodded and started drawing deep, slow breaths, closing her eyes and sitting in lotus position but she didn't try to meditate again. Slowly but surely the objects began to slow and come to a rest and her cloak returned to its usual dark blue. The others heaved a collective sigh of relief as they realized that they were all safe and Raven was less upset. The other three approached the changeling and the empath.

"You okay Rae?" Asked Cyborg, concerned. She nodded.

Robin couldn't quench his curiosity, "Why did the room burst into flames?"

"I-I can't tell you." Replied Raven, still looking thoroughly shaken.

"Please Raven, we could assist." Said Starfire.

Raven swallowed hard, "I can't tell you… I don't know how."

Beast boy saw that she was going somewhere, "But…?"

"I could show you. I-I can use my powers, if it's okay with you. B-but you've got to understand, this is big, like nothing we've ever faced. It might be better for you not to know."

Beast boy spoke for them all, "Rae, it's your problem, that makes it our problem too."

They all nodded their consent. Raven gathered herself and began to chant a foreign spell, not her usual mantra, causing a ghostly apparition to appear in the middle of the common room. She completed the spell and the phantom image solidified. It was a crib with several cloaked figures around it.

The team approached to see a small baby in the crib, just a newborn by the looks of it, with a small mop of purple hair and a bright red gem on its forehead, fast asleep. As one they turned to their dark friend. "Is that…"

Raven nodded, "Yeah."

The figures around the bassinette joined hands and began to chant. "They're looking into my future." Raven said.

With one accord the robed figures convulsed and released each other, though remained standing. Their eyes vacant, they intoned in deep hellish voices,  
"The Gem was born of evils fire  
The Gem shall be his portal,  
He comes to claim, He comes to sire  
The end of all things mortal!"

They shuddered again and came to. They all looked furious before one of them bellowed, "ARELLA!"

A weak looking woman walked into the room. She wore a white robe and had the same hair and chakra gem as the baby in the crib. "Yes?" She asked slightly fearfully.

"Why did you not tell us of this child's parentage?"

If possible the woman looked even more afraid, "I did in a manner of speaking. You know I am her mother."

In less time than it took to say it one of the figures was nose to nose with Arella, "Don't play games with me woman!" He gestured violently to the cot, "This is the spawn of Trigon the Terrible, and you kept it _secret?"_

The titans gasped as they realized the implications of this. The teenage Raven had her arms crossed around her waist and wasn't looking at any of them.

"Her parentage is of no matter. She can live a full life no matter who her father was."

"You think that's _it? _That you can just go on your way? No. He will use her to travel to this dimension, and when He does… Azar help us all."

Arella stared at the monks in shock and they all moved around the crib to gaze upon the sleeping baby.

"This child is going to end the world, whether she wants to or not."

The vision faded leaving the titans standing in their living room. Raven, who looked as if the entire world was against her, was standing slightly away from the rest. "So now you know."

Three of the other titans stared at her in shock. The other in sadness. None of them said a word.

The dark girl kept going, "I guess you know what needs to be done now."

They all shook their heads so she quickly glided over to the kitchen and unsheathed a large cutting knife, flying over to Robin and offering it to him hilt first. "Do it."

Her friends spoke pretty much in unison. "_What?"_

Raven looked at each of them in turn, ending on Robin, "You know what you'd do if the gem in the prophecy was an object." She drew one hand in front of her face, flexing her fingers, "I'm even worse. I'd end my existence if I could but father won't let me. Do it."

Robin took the blade and stared at it for a microsecond before throwing it to the ground. "Never."

She gave him a hard stare, "You're the leader, it's your job to get rid of threats."

"It's my job to save lives and above all, protect my team." His will equaled hers.

"Then save four out of five. It's better than the alternative."

"No." This time it was not only Robin, but all of them.

They all looked at her for a long moment before Beast boy stepped forwards, "I've got the Beast inside me, and one day it's gonna get out again. I'm a ticking time bomb." He picked up the knife and handed it to the empath and bared his chest at her, "Do it."

She stared at him and didn't move. Beast boy's skin started to shift, fur sprouting all over him, his teeth growing to fangs until the Beast stood before them. A soft growl was emanating from him but his eyes were wide and soulful.

Raven stared at him, still not moving nor uttering a word. Beast boy eventually changed back but also didn't move.

The corner of Raven's mouth twitched in the echo of her usual sardonic smirk, "Do you know how many times I've dreamed of this?"

Beast boy merely grinned back and raised his eyebrows questioningly.

The girl closed her eyes for a long moment and sighed, "I hate you." She said before putting the knife down on the bench.

The green shape shifter grinned wider, "No you don't."

Raven gritted her teeth, "Fine, I hate that I don't hate you. Better?"

"Much." He replied before hugging her tightly.

"Let me go."

"Nu uh."

The other titans smiled and joined the group hug. "Friends are God's way of apologizing for family. Happy birthday?" Whispered Beast boy so only Raven could hear.

She smiled lopsidedly, "It'll do."

**a.n. there you go! I actually wrote most of a BB/Rae one (with just them) but thought 'my god, I do too many of those' so I wrote this instead. If anyone wants the other one to finish and/or rewrite, just pm me **** cya 'round.**


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